Tainted: Reverse
by Liore
Summary: Tainted world of endless time... stealing hearts and cursing minds. Forgotten land of sand and pain... a past that lurks in darkened rain. Could such a place find hope of day? Reverse the dark and seek the way... XD: GoD based.
1. Prologue

(Note: This is a fanfiction based on _XD: Gale of Darkness_. I guess I should tell you right now that it's highly spinned-off, yet includes the same characters and places from the game. Some characters are OCs, yet only a few are actually important. The plot pretty much twists the events and when they took place throughout the entire thing. Basically, this is the game that I've taken and created my own plot for. I've spent 2 years working on it, thus I hope you enjoy it. If you don't, er... don't read it. Especially if you don't like _XD_ or _Colosseum_ in the first place. Also, if you need more of a summary, check my profile. Actually, I suggest you do that.

I only own my OCs throughout this. Pokemon and related characters belong to Nintendo.)

**Part One of Tainted: Reverse**

**Prologue**

"September 15th, Ilex Forest, 7:45, evening..."

The forest was dark and humid, the sun having disappeared in the horizon just minutes ago. Birds fluttered from branch to branch, heading towards their nests for the night. In their place, the sorrowful cries of the bug Pokemon rang out, just now starting their own day in the late hour. The speaker listened to them drowsily, recalling her own words and glancing at the egg beside her. It rested peacefully in the tree's limbs, bending them back with its heavy weight. The egg shuttered lightly, yet enough so to get her moving from her own spot on the branch.

"At it again, eh, Celebi?"

Something plunged down beside her, talons scraping and wings flapping to get a better grip. She didn't even need to turn to realized who it was.

"Indeed," Celebi said. "I've been at it since this morning."

The bird nodded swiftly, drawing its wings against its fluffy body. "Every day, I must fly to search for food and shelter. But even I can find a break every once and awhile." It glanced down at its feet, reluctant to go any further. "You... you work yourself too hard sometimes, you know."

She only laughed, yet her light blue eyes flashed of concealed weariness. "If I were to take breaks, what would this world come to? I am a legend, and I must accomplish my tasks with haste."

"Y-yes!" the bird chirped uneasily. "But you'll wear yourself out one day if you continue on like this!"

"I'm fine," she assured him. "This is the last one for today, anyways. I'll rest afterwards."

Her friend nodded again, relief filling its eyes. "I'll never see how you do it, delivering eggs from future to present. You must be one of the hardest working legends alive."

_Tell me about it. _"Sometimes we must do things we don't necessarily feel like doing." Celebi began fluttering her tiny wings, and lifted off of the branch, picking up and clutching the egg against her. "It's almost time. I still need to find a place for it... and, thank you for your consideration for me, Claymore."

"Yeah, I guess." It fluffed its feathers proudly. "If you ever need anything, feel free to ask me. Really, don't force too much on yourself, world balance or not."

Celebi nodded her thanks, slowly hovering away into the darkness of the trees. "I'm off then."

"Good luck to you, time traveler."

The bird was out of sight behind the darkened brush in a matter of seconds.

Wind rushing against her, Celebi flew on through the Ilex Forest. The scenery matched perfectly with her skin, creating the perfect camouflage. But there was no worry of predators here. Every Pokemon greatly admired the tiny legend, and would not dare try to attack. Many times, a giant owl Pokemon– Noctowl– would dive in front of her path, carrying a struggling Rattata or Sentret in its piercing talons. And she barely glanced at them. For the world to prosper, one life must always be given up for the sake of another...

The hoots and cries continued to surround her, growing louder every minute. It stirred a new strength in her, pushing her to fly faster, until finally she entered a clearing and slowed. The moon shined directly overhead, casting the area in an eerie white.

Celebi closed her eyes, summoning the stored strength deep within herself. All the while, the Pokemon cries continued... crying out to the moon.

An orb of light suddenly appeared before her, a star in the forest sky. Altogether, the cries vanished. The sight was phenomenal. Around the orb, a water-like reflection glittered, casting around the clearing and up into the trees. Celebi opened her eyes and marveled at the sight. It was so warm and familiar to her, being the only thing that marked her as a legend. Time traveling.

"Control the time..." she murmured to herself. Then raising her voice, "August 20th, Mt. Ember, 12:30, noon!"

The orb blinked a few times, accepting the command, then whirled into a mass of light, blurring out the forest completely. Celebi took a breath, then plunged herself with the egg in hand into the portal of time.

The light disappeared as soon as she had left, leaving the Ilex Forest in darkness once more. The Pokemon slowly took up their cries once again into the night.

The portal was one huge tunnel. All she had to do was reach the end of it, and she was there. Traveling the dimensions in space, it was as simple as that. Celebi could already see the end of it now, a growing dot in the bright tunnel. This wasn't so bad after all. Her strength had seemed to return, and the egg felt lighter than ever before. She looked down at it.

It was a dark red, and warm. Obviously a fire type. Mt. Ember was a perfect place for it, already supporting a ton of the same breed. After she had delivered it, she would head straight for a nice, quiet area. Somewhere where no one would disturb her, and definitely a place with no trainers. The process of being shoved relentlessly into a small, dark capsule was too much to bare.

The end of the tunnel was approaching fast now. She would be through in only a few more minutes. That lovely warm area was sounding really good right now...

The lights suddenly flashed off, at least, that's what Celebi had thought. The bright tunnel had dimmed down into a dark purple, which swirled around her in the previous tunnel's place, out of control. She panicked. What was happening? Nothing like this had ever occurred before!

But the end of the tunnel was still there, shining even brighter in the now-darkened portal. She spend towards it, driven by her own fear. Until it flashed out as well.

Darkness. The warmth of the tunnel was gone, and she couldn't see anything. Where was up? Down?

"D... did I summon it wrong...?!" She shut her eyes and grasped the egg to her body, becoming disoriented from the blackness. If she were to fall while time traveling, she would be lost in the portal forever. Which wouldn't be good. At all.

She felt wind against her, and realized she was falling. Her inspirational strength had vanished, and the weight of the egg was increasing. But perhaps she wasn't falling down. Perhaps she was still flying forward.

This was immediately proved false as something suddenly grabbed her, an invisible hand yanking her undoubtedly downwards. The same darkness. That was all there was. The darkness was pulling her to hell.

"Portal! Why kill me now?!" Celebi struggled against the pull, fear the only thing driving her on. She had just been blissfully flying towards her destination! What _was_ this? A nightmare?

Finally, her fatigue overpowered her fear, and she ceased flying against the dark hands. They yanked her down into the blackness with released strength, yet Celebi never loosened her grip on the egg. Down... down... down into the blackness. She closed her eyes and let her conscience slowly fade away.

A sudden beam of light. She managed to look down, eyes widening as it took her sight completely. Warmth and light returned. The tainted portal of time had vanished completely.

Moments later, the legend was met with a face full of fur. The speeding impact brought her forcefully on what she thought to be a body, and could of sworn she heard it whimper in pain beneath her. She screamed, and pushed it away.

It was indeed a body. A Pokemon's, in fact. It laid motionlessly on its side against the ground, as if never bothered, or maybe dead. Celebi took this chance to observe her new surroundings. It was a large, white room filled with nothing at all besides herself, the body, and...

The egg. It was on the floor, cracked. Celebi could hardly move. It would slowly die, never to hatch.

She had failed.

Taking a shaking breath, Celebi pulled herself up and flew to the ceiling of the white room (which could hardly be called a ceiling, but it was at a far enough distance for her comfort), and gazed down at the scene. The body was a dark spot in the white abyss, the cracked egg laying dully beside it.

This was an afterlife. A domain of a deceased Pokemon. There was no heaven nor hell for them. The afterlife took its place, and served as an eternal paradise filled with memories of the Pokemon's life, excluding the nightmares. But this one was completely empty. It wasn't possible for someone to have such a boring life, was it?

And there was another question on her mind: what happened inside the portal? She had not summoned one leading to an afterlife, nor did she remember something like this ever occurring in history. The portal of time suddenly blackening with darkness, then leading her to the deceased...

_I guess I slipped up on the summoning, after all..._

The body twitched, causing Celebi's stomach to lurch. Her energy was too low to re-summon the portal now. She knew she'd have to wait at least a few minutes before trying again.

The creature's eyes opened drowsily, blinking a few times. Then, bolting up, glanced widely around. It first examined its body, making a face as if it never knew it had ever possessed one before. Then it noticed the egg. It pressed its nose against the shell, feeling its warmth slowly vanish. So far so good. It hadn't noticed her.

As if to read her mind, the creature look up, and gasped. She could of smacked herself.

"C-Celebi?" it rasped, eyes widening. The legend painfully forced herself to smile.

"Um, yes?"

"You're... you're okay!" Its muzzle opened into a gaping grin, eyes sparkling. "I knew you were! I knew you weren't completely gone!"

Celebi could only blink at the words. "I'm sorry?"

"Yeah, you're right. Who cares!" Its face hardened, replacing the grin. "You have to help us! Just like you did five years ago, right?!"

Five years ago. She thought she'd never hear of it again. "Where did you–?"

"Everyone's given up! Thousands are dead, and–"

"Please, hang on a minute..."

"- ia was only the first! Who knew they'd all be captured? And the person running it isn't even–"

"Excuse me–"

"– You _have_ to come, now! You're the only one that can–!"

This was getting ridiculous. "_You're dead!_" she shouted, clenching her tiny fists.

The creature froze. She knew it wasn't the best way to go about things, but what else could she do? She had no idea what this creature was talking about in the first place!

The Pokemon began shaking slightly, then in rapid jerks. "D-_dead?_ How can I be...?

Regaining her courage, Celebi spoke once more. "Yes. You see, this is your afterlife. It's suppose to be filled with what you loved most when you were alive, which is why this confuses me..." She trailed off, silenced by the new emotion spreading across the Pokemon's face.

"_Dead?!_" the creature choked. It began pacing, never blinking once and staring straight through the ground. Celebi could tell it wasn't the kind to be frightened easily. "But I can't be dead!" it sobbed. "I was the only one left! Only one left to protect..." It broke off, looking pitifully back up at Celebi. "Please! Y-you can help! You _must_!"

"I'm sorry," she said sternly, "but I can't. I'm simply a time traveler. I'm sorry about your friend, but... I really have no idea what you're talking about in the first place." Her strength was back; she could feel it. It was time to finally get out of here.

Celebi took once last look at the egg below, and shuttered. "Now, I'm tired. I just lost something very dear to me. I'm leaving."

She began chanting the summoning, calling forth the orb once more. Hopefully, it wouldn't lead her back in the same place again. The other Pokemon cried out in horror.

"No! You have to help! You were there! You were–"

"No, I wasn't. Now please, leave me alone, and enjoy your home here." _If you can even call this a home._

The portal appeared, the same tiny orb appearing and accepting Celebi's commands. It was finally time.

She turned her back towards the creature, pausing suddenly to ponder whether or not she had just heard it gasp in realization. But she pushed it away from her mind, and peered into the portal. Its light had magically returned, the exit sparkling at the end, giving off its familiar warmth... the warmth that promised to spirit her away from here.

"I know who you are!"

(Note: I never liked the prologue, but it must be done. A cliff hanger, sorry. Some people don't like them, but I on the other hand _love _them_._ Just push this one out of your mind for now. Reviews are greatly welcomed. Now on to the slow part... the beginning.)


	2. Three Days of Flight

(Note: First impressions are never the best. I really hope you realize that...

This entire chapter takes place in Johto. There's no connection to Orre, at least, not yet. I can tell you it gets a lot better when it does, though, in case you get tired of this.)

**Chapter 1 - The Beginning Days of Flight**

"September 16th, Lake of Rage, 6:30, evening..."

Celebi resumed her tasks the very next day, now carrying a light brown egg in her long arms. It shone in the blood-red sun, reflecting a small white stroke across its surface, looking as if someone had painted it on with a small brush. Its important look attracted many eyes from the trees surrounding them as the legend flew, each secretly wanting the beautiful egg to themselves.

Its deliverer, on the other hand, looked nothing like the burden. She hadn't rest since the night before, and struggled to keep herself in the air. Her antennae drooped, and her shoulders sagged with the weight. Twice, she had almost flown straight into a tree while resting her eyes, and cursed when their branches had successfully scratched her skin during the dodge. The legend really couldn't care less if she dropped the egg when doing so. Besides, it wouldn't be her first loss anymore.

The lake could now be seen behind the few trees ahead, shining like the egg with the warm red. The sight made her even more tired, and she yawned, finding a place to sit on a nearby tree branch. The water was dotted with small light blue dots, marking the heads of the native Woopers. The bobbed up and down, giving an occasional "Paaaah..." with oblivious expressions on their faces. No enemies, no worries. Celebi longed to be one of them.

The Lake of Rage, it was called. Years ago, a sinister organization had upset the inhabiting Gyrados, causing them to go on rampage. The evildoers were stopped, though, and the dragon-like Pokemon were removed from the lake. It was now one of the most peaceful places in the region of Johto.

Celebi glared at the egg in her lap, frustrated at knowing she had to continue on for an even longer distance. Her friend had given her such a nice complement the previous day, and now she hated it. She wanted to crush the shell in her hands and rip the life out.

All a side effect from fatigue, of course.

She lifted herself up and flew over to the shoreline. It was hot, and she decided now would be nice time for a break. The legend peered into the water, and narrowed her eyes at the reflection. She looked terrible!_ Good Arceus, it just keeps getting worse!_

Something snapped a few yards away, coming from her left. Celebi jumped and bolted up towards the trees, dropping the egg into the lake before hand, of course.

She cursed as it began floating away towards a few curious Wooper. But there was no time to go after it. Whatever was approaching was coming fast.

Grinding her teeth, the legend covered herself in the protection of the tree's leaves, eyes blazing down in sheer anger at the ground.

_I swear, I'll kill whoever that is... haven't used Psychic in awhile._

The brush began rustling, drawing a straight line across the ground, until it finally opened up and a boy about the age of thirteen emerged from them. He panted heavily, stopping short before looking back behind them, then taking off again as another snap sounded.

_Drat! I missed._

But she wasn't at complete loss yet. There was indeed someone– or_ something_– approaching from the same direction the other kid had exited from. Perhaps this one would be a lot better target.

Celebi gagged and dug her claws into the branch's soft bark. Something smelt absolutely _terrible. _It didn't take her too long to figure out what was coming.

A blob of slime crawled out of the brush, mouth gaping stupidly as it looked around in confusion. Grimer. She _hated_ Grimer. The poison Pokemon was one of the dumbest creatures alive, the only thing making up for it being their strength. A sort of bully-like Pokemon. Celebi had prayed to Arceus at times simply to ask why in the world it had created such a thing.

_Whatever,_ she thought to herself_. This'll be fun to damage._

But as soon as she began to issue the next Psychic, the bushes rustled again, and another boy stepped out, about the same age as the first. Celebi eyed him dangerously from behind the leaves.

"Grimer! What the hell are you doing?!" he raged, flicking back his dark bangs. "Get in there and teach that rat a leason!"

The poison Pokemon flinched at the scolding, one eye slowly sliding down its slimy body. Celebi snickered to herself. Maybe she didn't have to do anything after all. This kid was doing a fine job with the Grimer, and simply watching sounded refreshing.

The sludge pile gave a muffled growl, then tore off into the direction the first kid had also taken. Celebi gave it a few points for its quick speed, which was better than some of the other Grimers' she had seen before. Its trainer lingered for a moment, glancing around the area in silence. Celebi almost thought he had seen her, but he took off shortly afterwards.

_Now_ things would get interesting. Celebi pulled herself up, and raced after them overhead, forgetting about the egg that was now in the middle of the vast lake...

She first followed Grimer's lead, but soon got bored with it and sped up in search for the first boy. He wasn't hard to spot, her haven't the advantage of height, and the legend soon caught up with him. He had traveled away from the lake into the woods further, and had arrived at a clearing. It vaguely reminded Celebi of the night before.

He pressed through it, which she found somewhat stupid. If he was trying to hide, he was doing a terrible job at it, unless...

A few trees were scattered throughout the clearing, and he was speeding towards one. Then, finally reaching it, he lifted himself onto its branches and got into a position rather similar to her own. Celebi raced for it, then quietly flew in behind him. He stared straight ahead at the place he had entered from, waiting for the Grimer to appear. Deciding there wasn't much else she could do without making herself noticed, Celebi watched as well.

Moments later it appeared, but for some reason, never left the tree line. It gave off another stupid cry, trying to sound threatening but failing completely. Celebi longed to shove the kid off the branch, just to see what would happen. She knew she could do it, too. He was so..._ weak-looking_. And it'd be funny.

The other trainer had arrived behind his Pokemon, now, and scuffed it on the head to shut it up. He, too, never stepped into the clearing. Celebi could only guess that this had happened many times before, and by experience, well... they either never thought to look in a tree, or this kid was good a hiding.

"Dammit, Kite!" the Grimer trainer yelled. "Don't think you can keep hiding forever!"

Celebi widened her eyes, wondering if she had heard right. Puzzled, she glanced down at the boy in front of her, only now studying what he really looked like.

He had spiky red hair and green eyes. His apparel consisted of a black, long sleeved shirt with a yellow jacket, a blue headband, and a pair of goggles around his neck.

Something clicked in Celebi's mind. She slowly backed away, careful not to brush against the draping leaves above and around her. _Help, _she wondered. _I must find help..._

The legend took off, lost in her own thoughts.

The Grimer's trainer pulled out a small white and red capsule from his belt, and pointed it at his Pokemon. A flash of light, and the sludge Pokemon was returned inside the ball. The trainer glanced around the clearing again, then turned and walked back towards the lake.

Kite waited. There was always the chance that they would return. But after a good, long ten minutes, he decided otherwise, and began to descend from the tree. The entire time he was there, he couldn't help but feel as if something was behind him, watching.

But he pushed it away, and began to trudge back towards the tree line, and to the lake.

The Lake of Rageit was called. He could relate to its name.

_Pokemon... useless..._

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

The next day was completely normal. Kite attended his school in Mahogany Town, which he was late for, and failed another assignment.

"It's a school about Pokemon," he said as his teacher flung the graded work onto his desk. "What idiot's gonna care about what berry cures what in real life? One that camps for a living?"

"Then I'm _assuming _you already have your career planned out?" she replied dryly. She was old, and perhaps the person that Kite hated most, next to Kaze.

The Grimer trainer sneered from across the room, enjoying every moment. He was the one who reported Kite late, after all. Being late for class resulted in ridiculing quizzes given at random. Kite was pretty use to it by now. He couldn't remember the last time he had answered one right.

This was what was occurring now.

"What berry cures poisoned Pokemon?" the teacher had asked.

Kite retaliated with his comment. Who really cared? Pokemon training was a waste of time. Anyone could do it.

"Except for you, obviously," Kaze yawned. "It's a Pecha berry, by the way."

"Good job, Kaze," the old lady replied. "Extra credit will be given."

The entire class cheered in amazement. Kite simply shrugged.

"Yeah, good job Kaze. You named a berry. Can you do that with a pinecone, too?"

The dark-haired boy's triumphant look faded into rage. "Look who's talking."

The teacher called for homework, and the class crowded over to her desk. Kaze took this chance to address Kite, who had nothing to turn in in the first place.

"Too bad you can't use those smart remarks after class."

He cringed. It was true, he couldn't. This was why Kite took full pleasure of taking his small revenge in the middle of the day, where Kaze couldn't use his Grimer. However, as soon as the school let out, it was back in defense mode.

Hours later the bell rang. The students rushed out of the building, gathering with friends and getting into various discussions. Kite usually sped ahead of them to get away from the place as soon as possible. But today, his teacher stopped him. He flinched as Kaze shot him a threatening look and went ahead, grabbing a Poke Ball from his belt.

"I've lost count of how many times you've failed to return your work," the woman said after everyone had left. " I see no other way for punishment besides, let's see..." She pulled out a few of her own books from the wooden desk and flipped through them. "Pages one through twenty-seven in _Regions of the World_, nineteen through thirty in _Cities in the Regions of the World_, and also, since you seem to need it, eleven through forty in the _Berry Foundations _book. Oh, and I'd like a report on that."

"That's insane!" Kite cried. "No one could do that in one night!"

"Then I'd suggest you'd get to it."

"No way!"

Her piercing stare hardened, causing him to fall silent.

"If it's not finished, there will be far worse consequences. And you'd better not damage those books, either." She smiled. "It's not like you could pay them off, anyways."

Kite tore the books away from her and shoved them into his bag, before storming out of the room.

Mahogany Town was peaceful that day, almost all of the students already home. Kite's own house was closer to the lake, which meant walking through a route everyday. Luckily, it looked like Kaze had already left as well, until he caught sight of a group standing on the opposite end of the building. As if on schedule, Kaze broke through the middle of it, Grimer right behind him.

"Hey, hey! D'you remember what that berry was called yet, wretch?"

Kite considered the distance between them. If he could make it home, there would be nothing Kaze could do, nor his Pokemon. Getting there fast enough was the key, and it didn't take much effort, seeing that Grimer wasn't particularly fast in the first place.

"Yeah, I think so," he replied, eyes glued to the route entrance.

"Ah, good," Kaze said, "Cause it might help after this! Grimer, Toxic!"

Kite barely dodged the puddle of poison that suddenly formed beneath him, and dashed towards the route. Grimer gave a dull cry, then pursued after.

Kite had been through this millions of times. Even if he didn't make it home, he could always loose Grimer near the lake. For some reason, the Pokemon was afraid of it, and gratefully retreated once it lost sight of him.

The route flew by, and soon the water became visible through the trees. He paused, and glanced behind him. Usually, he was aloud a short break at this part thanks to Grimer's slowness. However, something seemed off. He could hear it still coming, loudly.

He chose the right side of the lake to travel this time, yesterday's being the left. No doubt would it slow now. It had just gotten an early start.

But he continued to hear its grunts, almost directly behind him the entire time. Why was it faster? It should of at least stopped to figure out which way he had gone. Perhaps running closer to the water would help.

Running against rocks only slowed him though, and he had to put enormous effort in to prevent himself from falling. If he were to accidentally step on a wet rock...

Too late. He drew too close to the lake shore, and fell against the shards. Ignoring his pain, he struggled back towards the trees and threw himself behind one, gripping his arm in pain. It was bleeding; he could feel the warm blood through his hand.

The poison Pokemon appeared soon after, but fortunately was too late to see Kite hide. It glanced around, oblivious to the blood in front of it staining the rocks. The tide drew in, and Grimer backed away at it, eyes torn away from the trees where Kite was sitting.

But Kaze appeared, and Kite knew if he saw the blood he could pinpoint his location immediately. Luckily, the tide from before had washed it away, and the trainer gave up.

"Well, Kite," he said, mostly to himself. "Wherever you are, don't forget about the tournament tomorrow. Grimer and I have been training for the past few months for it. There's no way we're going to lose, once Grimer... well, I don't want to spoil it." He walked away back towards woods. "Let's go, Grimer."

The tournament. He had forgotten all about it. But what was Kaze talking about? Once Grimer what?

Kite slowly glanced out from behind the tree. They were gone.

He examined his arm, and cursed. Scrapes ripped across it, even through his long clothing. Using the tree for grip, he pulled himself up.

The lake shimmered in the afternoon sun once more, and he hated it. That, and everyone he'd even met. Kaze, his teacher, the students... _Pokemon._

They were the cause of that event... they were the cause of everything.

Kite ripped his school bag away from him and began pulling the books out, throwing each one forcefully into the water. The Wooper popped their heads up to watch the commotion, seeking out food, but dove back under once the bag had been thrown in their direction. Kite watched them go, fighting to catch his breath. His vision was blurring, and he cursed himself for letting himself cry. He'd kill them all, one way or another.

Something rustled from above. He spun around, and narrowed his eyes at the newcomer. A Pidgey. One of the dumbest Pokemon alive. It starred back down at him through dark brown eyes, head tilting in confusion. Kite bent down and selected a rock, before hurling it at the bird. It simply sidestepped the attack, then returned to its place on the branch, clicking its beak sadly.

"What a shame," it chirped. "Finding pleasure in throwing stones."

Kite fell back in shock, eyes wide. "You... you..." That wasn't possible. "_W-what?!_"

"Huh, that is weird." The Pidgey blinking a few times, then proceeded in preening itself. "I didn't know humans could communicate with us. 'Guess it's a rare thing."

"But... no, you're some sort of parrot then!"

"A _parrot_?" the bird squawked, looking thoroughly ashamed. "What sort of insult was that?"

"Well, you can't talk!" Kite shot back indignantly. "You're just some stupid Pokemon!"

The bird sighed. "I could say the same." It then lifted into the air and flew down to the ground in front of him. Kite quickly stepped back.

"What? Are you scared of me?" it asked.

"No!"

"What about them?" It nodded towards the Wooper. They had surfaced again, enjoying the summer sun.

Kite shook his head. What was he doing here, talking to some bird? It just sat there, still staring at the tiny blue Pokemon. Now that he thought about it, it had flown down in an awkward manner, its wing stretched motionlessly at its side.

"What happened?" he managed to ask.

"Broke it."

Kite sighed. He knew that in the bag around is waist– different from the school one he had tossed into the lake– there was enough bandage material to wrap the wing. There wasn't really any reason to hate this particular Pidgey, anyways. He reached into it and pulled them out.

"Um, I can..."

The bird looked up, a bit surprised at the change of heart. "Well, go ahead, of course!"

Finding a straight stick, Kite proceeded to bandage the broken wing. He studied the bird while he went. It was so _small._ Grimer was at least three times its size. The sludge monster could probably eat it in one bite.

With the bandage completed, the Pidgey stretched its wing out in front of it, marveling the sight.

"Oh, thank you!" it chirped, looking up at him with shining eyes. "I swear, I'll repay you some day!"

Kite nodded, highly doubting it. What could this small bird possibly do to help him in any way?

"The sun," it continued, glancing at the sky with a worried expression. "Things come out at night. Ekans, Arboks, you name it. I gotta go now."

It turned and flapped up to the branch again. Kite had already began walking at the thought of the snakes.

"Um, wait."

He stopped, and looked back at the Pidgey. It was smiling happily, its new wing closed at its side.

"My name's Claymore!" it said, as if presenting some kind of expensive new gift.

"Pokemon can have names?" Kite asked in confusion. He had never heard of that before. Probably because the other kids he knew weren't creative enough to give their's any. But a wild Pokemon?

"If they want."

"Oh. Well, okay then."

He turned and walked away.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

The tournament was indeed the next day, and Kite had forgotten about the Pidgey completely.

The entire school was outside, everyone chatting happily about the same thing, Poke Balls in hand.

"I've given my Furret a ton of Proteins," a girl said smartly to her friend. "It raises its attack power to its maximum."

"I know," her friend replied, nodding towards his Raticate. "I've given mine some as well. There are a ton of items like that, each able to increase something, such as attack, defense, speed..."

So that was how Grimer was faster. Kaze had used speed-increasing items on it. Wonderful.

Kite pulled away from the conversation and walked towards the front of the school. An arena was drawn on the pavement, most likely by chalk. A bell sounded from somewhere, and the students began swarming around the stage. He pulled away from them, greatly not wanting to be caught in front.

A teacher began explaining the rules on an microphone, having a bit of trouble talking over the excited children. Kite mostly ignored it, especially when it started announcing the contestants. Maybe he could just leave for today. No one would notice.

"– will be facing Kaze and Muk!"

_Muk?_

Kite averted his gaze back to the arena. He _couldn't_ of heard right. Through the sea of students, he caught sight of Kaze waving haughtily in the middle of the arena. Behind him stood the biggest Grimer he'd ever seen. Its eyes were narrowed, hands bulkier and even more mass than that of the old Grimer. Its mouth gaped open as always, this time rivaling its trainer's own height.

Grimer had evolved.

Panic swept through Kite as he stared at it. There would be no getting away. He began to shake slightly.

"Begin!" The teacher's call snapped Kite out of his trance. He glanced around, trying to who it was Muk was facing. Perhaps they could beat it.

"Mareeeeep!"

A flash of lightning covered the stage. Kite saw Muk flinch a little in the light, but it immediately recovered and readied itself for its own attack. Kaze pointed cooly at the opponent.

"Muk! Sludge Bomb!"

The massive Pokemon roared defiantly at its foe. A large ball of slim began to ooze out of its palm, then crystallized into a boulder-like mass. A second later, Muk flung the ball with a surprising force at the Mareep, and the Wool Pokemon had barely any time to react as it crashed into its side. It immediately collapsed on the ground and fainted. Cheers rose up in the crowd, but Kite could not hear anything because of the fear that was welling up inside him. It wasn't the stupid, slow Grimer anymore. It was Muk. _Muk._

He backed away into the crowd even further now, hardly caring as he rammed into a few of the students. They screamed out at him, but he continued on anyways, trying to get away. Far away.

"No students are permitted to leave during the tournament!"

Kite froze at the words. The intercom teacher had noticed him, and she wasn't the only one.

Kaze smirked as he spotted him. "Yeah, you wouldn't want to miss this!"

"Actually, I think I would." Kite continued on, fear driving him against the screaming teacher's orders. _You'd think these idiots would do something about this..._

"Oooh okay, you want to experience it first hand then!"

Someone screamed, but Kite knew all too well what had happened. Muk had charged straight into the crowd after him, knowing it could not fail its master once again. Kite summoned all of his strength as he sped off from the screaming crowd, and the rapid-like Muk.

He had soon found the same route he had always taken, and raced across it. Now that it evolved, it would be a lot smarter. He had to take a different path. Twisting through the brush and trees, Kite listened for the pursuit of the poison Pokemon behind him. It never came, and a great relief rushed through him. Maybe it wasn't smarter after all. Maybe it had become a lot stupider... and a lot slower, too, despite the items.

He had reached the shore, its water glistening in the morning sun. None of the evening Woopers were out yet, making the surface look bare without them. Taking a shaking breath, Kite sat against a tree. He had never taken this path before, so that was good. It was probably wondering around the opposite end of the lake by now...

Something snake-like suddenly wrapped itself around him. Kite cried out in surprise as he was lifted off the ground. All he could see for a moment was the sky, then he was rammed down hard on his back against the ground. Staggering to get up, Kite felt his heart drop as he noticed Muk looming over him. Kaze was no where to be seen.

He could not move nor breathe. He had never been exactly afraid of Grimer; it only annoyed him and caused his hatred of Pokemon to rise every day. But this... he could only stare.

Muk raised its massive arm again and lashed down at Kite, knocking him aside in one glance. He slowly pulled himself up again, but could not get himself to run. Another knock to the side and he felt himself land onto the rocky shoreline. The shards cut into him like glass again, and he could not pull himself up on the wet stones. The waves washed over him as he painfully looked up again. Muk was sliding towards him. _Death_ was sliding towards him.

Perhaps Kaze would stop his Pokemon. Would he really risk being accused for killing someone? The whole school had been witnesses, after all! Besides, he had no reason to kill, right?

As soon as Kite had thought it, the trainer stepped out from behind the trees. His expression did not change though. He looked exactly like his Pokemon– wild and insane for killing.

"Yes, I think that's exactly how the Mareep looked before it fainted," Kaze jeered. The same rage burned inside Kite, and he now felt somewhat sorry for the Mareep. But he couldn't do anything. Muk was now directly above him again.

"Muk, finish him."

Kite felt himself being lifted again, and for some reason, being dragged into the deeper part of the lake. Only when he was plunged under the water did he know what was happening. The old Grimer had lost its fear of water. It was drowning him. He had no energy to struggle. Only to fight to hold his breath, but for what point? No one was around, nor did anyone care. He felt his vision blacking out.

Muk jerked suddenly, though did not lose its grip. Kaze was shouting as well. Kite focused from under the water. Something was smashing against Muk, but was easily thrown off by the poison type's free arm. The arm then dealt a heavy plow against it, and the attacker plunged to the water, before suddenly bursting into a mass of light. Kite could not keep his focus on it any longer. His vision had now completely blacked out. A few moments later, he lost feeling.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

_Get up!_

Something was prodding him. Kite ignored it, until the prods became sharp pecks. He slowly opened his eyes. The evening sun blazed against the lake as it always had done. The silhouettes of the tiny Woopers were bobbing happily in the water. He painfully pulled himself up, wondering why he was wet.

"You're okay!"

He spun around, nearly falling as fatigue gripped him. A large bird stood beside him, its head feathers sticking up in excitement. Kite collapsed to the ground as he realized who it was.

"Claymore..."

"Yep!" the large bird squawked. "Aah, you've been out for awhile. Ha! That Muk probably will be too!"

"M-Muk?"

"Yes. But that pile of crap doesn't stand a chance for me, now that I've _evolved!_ My wing's even better too!" Claymore stretched his healed wing proudly. The wingspan had lengthened by feet now, giving the once-little Pidgey a huge update. But Kite could not feel any sort of emotion at all. There was no relief of being alive. He did not feel like getting up either.

Claymore continued to chat fiercely about his epic fight against Muk, but Kite had fallen asleep long before it was over. He woke to another sharp peck.

"What?" he growled.

"You're just going to sleep out here?" the Pidgeotto asked.

"Yes."

"But..."

"But what?"

"What about your, er, people?"

"What?"

"You know, family?"

"Oh, uh... I don't know. I gotta go, actually."

"Eh? Eeeeh? What is it? What's wrong?"

"Nothing..."

"Huh?"

"_Shut up!"_ Kite rose and stumbled away. Claymore nervously flapped after him.

"Uh, wait, I didn't mean–"

"Forget it." He continued on, acting oblivious to Claymore's presence, and only stopping after they had reached a small house at the end of the trees.

"Ooh, so this is your house?" Claymore asked, looking around. Kite swept past him, opening and heading through the door. He shut it as the Pidgeotto began following after him, and Claymore was only successful in stopping the door by shoving his wing in the way.

"Get out!" Kite yelled. Claymore looked extremely hurt.

"I-I'm sorry," he began, "if I offended you..."

"I don't care!" Kite seized a knife that was lying on a nearby desk, still holding the door. Claymore bristled in fear, but did not move.

"Why can't I know–?"

Kite plunged the knife down, aiming for Claymore's head. The bird screeched in surprise, but the knife did not meet his feathers. Instead, Kite felt something slam down hard on his back,

fell to the ground, his sight momentarily gone. It returned a few minutes later to see Claymore standing there, a snake in its mouth.

"They're really easy to kill when you're bigger than them," he chirped, throwing the dead Ekans down. Kite backed away from it.

"Ekans?" he repeated distantly.

"Yah, it seems like everyone wants to kill you today." Claymore yawned, then backed out of the door. "I guess I'll go now. It's pretty late." Then he took off, leaving Kite sitting there with a dead corpse. He stared at it for a minute.

"Pokemon... they're not suppose to..." He caught himself.

_Maybe I was wrong all along..._

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Kite awoke the next day hours after noon. It was a weekend, but that was not the only reason he felt a bit of excitement. He had to find Claymore and apologize.

Stepping outside, he ran towards the lake, yesterday's happenings coming back to him. There was a Pokemon that he didn't absolutely despise, and that one could take down Muk. A sort of lost happiness burned within him.

Claymore was in the exact same tree that Kite had first seen him in. The Pidgeotto simply laughed as he apologize, and remarked at how stupid Kite was.

Kite did not take this as an insult, and completely agreed with him. "It isn't your's, or really anyone else's fault I guess, besides _them._"

"Ah, there's no way that thing can knock me over!" Claymore chirped. "I'll take it on as many times as it comes at me!" He paused, thinking something over. "By the way, why was it chasing you?"

"It's a long story..." Kite mumbled, but something urged him on. "I guess you have the right to know."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

A few yards away, Kaze sat glaring at the Pidgeotto from behind the trees. Muk stood behind him, not daring to move in case its trainer took even more anger out on it. The boy growled angrily, then spun around and went back into the trees, Muk trailing behind him.

_Some Pokemon... and I thought Pidgeys were stupid..._

He smiled as they arrived at a lone house outside the trees.

"Such a Pokemon should be mine, no?" he asked himself, digging into his pocket. He retrievied a Poke Ball from it and threw it, unleashing a small red Pokemon. It clawed the air in excitement, shooting small embers from its yellow mouth in the process. "Magby, Flamethrower."

The little Pokemon puffed up its chest and unleashed a whirl of flames, aiming at the house. It was soon engulfed in the fire, and unable to hold itself up, fell to the ground in an explosion of heat. Kaze wordlessly recalled the Magby, then headed off into the brush. Muk followed silently behind.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Claymore had seen the smoke a few seconds after the house was inflamed. He eyed it for awhile, then finally felt the urge to point it out. "Eck, is that smoke?"

Kite sped off without a word, praying that the target was not what he thought. Only then did Claymore realize what had happened.

And it was. He stood there, trembling as he watched it fall. Everything. It was gone. Claymore flew up behind him, and also froze as the inferno grew. He could find nothing to say.

Something snapped behind them. Claymore was the first to react, and screeched in rage as Kaze stepped out, acting as if nothing had happened at all. Muk oozed behind him, glaring at the Pidgeotto. Claymore returned the stare. Kite had now turned as well, feeling nothing but the same pure hatred against the trainer. Kaze simply folded his arms.

"Sup?"

"Sh-shut..."

"What was that?"

"_Attack them!_"

Kite knew Claymore was not his own, but the Pidgeotto willingly obeyed anyway. He efficiently dove and slammed himself into the Muk. The poison Pokemon reared back at the blow, shocked at the quicker movements.

"And I thought I was going to have to ask," Kaze said lazily. "Well if you insist. Muk!"

Recovering, Muk began to form the same large sphere in its hand– the same move that was used on Mareep.

"Sludge Bomb!" Kite informed, and Claymore soared up into the air and out of the Muk's aim. The bomb missed, and taking full advantage of the failure, the Pidgeotto dove down again and began raking the Muk with its sharp talons. The poison monster roared in fury, and slowly raised up its large arm, preparing for the right moment, and...

The was a sharp crack as the arm landed down on the bird. Claymore toppled to the ground, a few of his feathers flying into the air in a trail. He struggled back onto his feet, panting heavily as the Muk advanced towards it. Kite stood there, panicking and having no clue what to do next.

But suddenly, Kaze called off his Pokemon.

"A Pokemon such as that should not be wasted," he explained, pulling out something from his bag. A blue and white metal sphere gleamed in his hand, the blue side baring red markings on top. "It's a Greatball," Kaze said, turning the blue side over to face the fallen bird. He threw it.

Kite suddenly caught on, but was far too late. Claymore disappeared in a burst of light, until only the small ball was left. It swerved a bit, the Pokemon inside desperately fighting to free itself. Then in stopped. Kite silently stared at it. A few of Claymore's feathers were still drifting slowly in the air, falling around the stilled capsule. He mindlessly grabbed one, gazed at it for a moment, before clenching it in his fist. After the satisfying silence, Kaze broke out into a roaring laughter.

"That Pokemon was never yours!" he choked, trying to catch his breath. "It was fair game. Heh, did you _seriously_ think it would be free forever? Well, maybe it _would_ have been..." Kaze gave a dramatic pause. "... if you'd of never met it in the first place."

Muk roared stupidly at this, causing Kite to back away. It was true, Claymore was never his.

"_Wow_, is that why you hate Pokemon?" Kaze went on. "'Cause you know they'd be doomed if you did like them? Ahahaha!"

Kite backed away further. He was defenseless, and this would be the only time to run. He couldn't freeze up as he had done before, unless he wanted to die, but then what chance would Claymore have then? What chance did it have in the first place?

Kaze's laughter died down. "You know, maybe we should put the other Pokemon you'll ever meet out of their misery." Here it was.

Kite was on the other side of the lake in seconds, his body screaming in protest as he raced on. There would be no hiding this time, only running. If he died from exhaustion, so be it.

A tree appeared in front of him, and he swerved away from it. Muk, however, ungracefully rammed into it, but quickly pulled itself together and continued in pursuit. That and many other quick-dodges occurred, and Kite soon felt himself slowing down. Muk never slowed its pace. He could hear the Pokemon directly behind him, though he didn't dare turn around to confirm it. Relief washed over him as the trees began to part, and quickened his speed with the rest of his little strength. It was suddenly harder to run though, and looking down, Kite saw that the ground was now covered in sand.

_What the...?_

He did not slow though, even when he could no longer hear his pursuer behind him. Only after a minute of it went by did Kite actually glance behind him. Muk was yards away, roaring at him in protest. He began to stop.

_What are you doing? Scared of dirt?_

But the Muk did not come after him, and instead turned and crawled back into the trees, and disappeared into the shadows. A familiar scene. Kite waited a few minutes, then collapsed to the ground in exhaustion. He laid there for a bit, only thinking of what a traitor he was for leaving Claymore. _I must go back..._

And do what? There was no way he could take out Muk without a Pokemon. But how would he manage to catch one? He had no money for a Pokeball. And where was he anyways? Johto did not consist of sand.

Kite opened his eyes and looked around. He was on what seemed to be a large road made of nothing but the white sand, with an ocean surrounding each side. Palm trees lined the road, swaying slightly in the cool wind. He had never heard of such a place existing in Johto, if this was Johto at all. It was nice though, and he stood up. _Perhaps I should take the road._

There really wasn't anything to lose, but the guilt of Claymore was still clinging to him. _No. I can't do anything now._

It was official. He set off down the beach-like road, staring back a few times in case Muk was to return. He soon lost sight of the forest as the road continued on its long stretch.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"I've been on this road for hours..." Kite sighed to himself. It had only been about twenty minutes, but his fatigue had caused him to walk slower than usual.

" ...veeee..."

Kite perked up. He could of sworn he had heard something. But after a moment or two, the noise did not sound again, and he trudged on.

" ...eeeeeveeee ...!"

The noise had been loud enough to pinpoint. Kite glanced out into the ocean, and quickly rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn't hallucinating.

A small brown dot was being swept around by the rushing waves, becoming completely plunged by them a few times, then bobbing back up again. It gave out a few more faint cries, then fell silent as a larger wave engulfed it.

"You've got to be kidding me..." Kite stared at where the Pokemon had vanished, then with a frustrated sigh, raced into the ocean, struggling to keep himself above the waves. _Here I am, going to die because of a stupid Pokemon. Just wonderful!_

Kite suddenly felt his fingers brush off of something furry. Grabbing it, he pulled both himself and the creature out of the water and staggered onto the land again. Then, he thrusted himself onto the ground, wanting more than anything to sleep here, but rolled over instead to inspect the Pokemon.

It looked like a normal fox, except its fur color was dusky brown instead of gold, and had a thick white mane running around its neck. It was unconscious, but alive. For now.

"What the heck is a fox doing in the middle of the ocean anyways?" Kite mumbled to himself. He had no time to think though; it would die if not seen to. Grasping the Pokemon in his arms, he continued his walk down the road. The further he went, the brighter the blazing sun got. _It's like the world hates me!_

A few more yards of painful staggering and panting, Kite finally saw what seemed to be heaven to him.

At the end of the road was a town. Right smack dab in the middle of the ocean. He picked up his pace once again.

It slowly grew in the distance, until he finally found himself standing in front of a sign, gasping for breath and shaking from dehydration. "Gateon... Port..."

He collapsed before he even had time to drop the Pokemon.

(Note: Looong. Okay, now it gets better.)


	3. A Port Called Gateon

(Note: Still boring. I swear, it gets better later on, if you already are bored. x-x I'm sorry...

Anyways, for this chapter, pretend there are two entrances/exits in Gateon. One being the original, the other to the east. That's the one that connects to my made up sand path. Oh, and I know that "Flair" is spelled wrong. It's suppose to be like that.)

**Chapter Two - A Port Called Gateon**

"Vul...?"

"Flair, out!"

A door slammed somewhere. Kite slowly felt feeling return to his body, but remained where he was, unmoving and hardly breathing. He had just felt something standing beside him a few moments ago, the place where it stood still warm. Finally gripping himself, he jerked awake.

He was laying on a bed, positioned in a small room with a large window in from of him. Small figures fluttered outside of it, looking like nothing but flying white dots in the great blue sky. Staring at them for a minute, Kite realized that they were actually Wingull, with an occasional larger Pelipper hovering with them at points. They gracefully glided in the air, never flapping their long wings and crying out into the skies. Then out of nowhere, they dove towards the ground, ceasing their screeching as they did so. A faint splash came as they crashed into the water, eager for a meal. _Water?_

Kite pulled himself up. Sitting there for a moment, he quickly leaped to his feet as memories of the previous day flooded back into his mind. That fox... thing. It could be his only hope. But what had happened to it?

He looked frantically around the room. The creature was no where to be seen.

A Pokemon Center. That had to be it.

He turned to the door, which was still slightly opened, the slamming somehow failing to close it completely. Pushing it back open, Kite found himself looking down a flight of wooden steps. The chinking of glass could be heard below, signifying the usage of the building– a bar or restaurant of some sort. But his position was well out of range, and was unable to confirm this. Only a door at the bottom of the stairway was visible, sunlight gleaming through its small window. He pelted down the stairs towards it.

_Please don't be dead... I only need you for one thing, then you can die as much as you __like..._

His mind continued to wonder even as he nearly crashed into a girl who had began to ascend up the steps. She pulled back in alarm as Kite zoomed past her. "W-what the-?! Wait!" But Kite was already out the door.

"Urk!" He automatically shut his eyes against the glare of the sun as soon as he stepped into the open. The smell of salt filled him, the Wingull's cries piercing through the air. Squinting through the sunlight, Kite blindly studied blazing port. People, mostly sailors, were walking about, either chatting loudly or yelling orders at each other as they worked. Enormous boats crowded the white docks in the harbor, the men and their Pokemon loading and unloading them in the heat. Kite slowly made out which Pokemon they were.

"Hit... Hitmonchan. Hitmonlee... Hariyama?"

He walked over to the docks for a closer look, ducking beneath the shadow of a building that rested closely beside them, a sign marking it as _Boating Equipment_.

They were indeed those fighting Pokemon, each with a build that was trademarked to their type. Kite instantly moved his attention away after one had noticed him, and instead glanced across the bright town for any signs of a Center. "There...!"

A building with a large, Pokeball-shaped hologram on its roof rested dully on the opposite side of the town, the shade of a passing cloud contributing to its look. Kite broke his cover from the equipment building and carefully raced towards it, dodging towering sailors along the way as they cursed at him in annoyance. He was halfway there when a piercing scream suddenly filled the air.

"_Cacturne!_"

Everyone froze at the words as a lady dashed out of what seemed to be some sort of tunnel. Looking into it, Kite noticed that it was in fact another entrance into the port, aside from the one he arrived through which was over to the east. Light gleamed at the end of the short passage, illuminating five large silhouettes creeping steadily towards the port. They swayed their massive arms at their sides, their yellow eyes glowing in the gloom.

It was only when they entered out into the port did he notice the public begin to react.

Perhaps all of the sailors now stood between the Cacturne and the rest of the port. Kite, although not necessarily liking the moment, was drawn in by curiosity and moved through the fleeing crowd, trying to catch a glimpse at the starting fight. Many of the sailors began grabbing their Pokemon's capsules, ready at any minute to attack the advancing cacti Pokemon.

"Yo!" a hearty voice suddenly rang out. "Hey, are those Cacturne I see there?"

Both trainers and enemy Pokemon looked around in confusion, trying to pinpoint the speaker. Kite looked as well, but paused as he realized that they were now all looking above him, and quickly backed away from the tall man standing directly behind him. A grey Pokemon with four arms stood beside its trainer, flexing its muscle-built body proudly: another fighting type. The man grinned happily as he eyed the enemy Pokemon through his tented shades.

"Aha! So, you decided to trespass into _my_ neighborhood again, eh? Well, then! Machamp and I accept your challenge!"

The Cacturne looked at each other in confusion, while the sailors glared at the man in rage.

"We can take care of them just fine!" one snapped at him. But the man did not look phased by the comment, and instead moved towards the sailors. They backed away, both trainer and Pokemon scowling at the pair.

"Ah, well... let's not forget what happened the last time I let you take them on yourself, mate!" The man began to laugh, and a few of the sailors began issuing rude gestures at him. But the Cacturne had now snapped out of their daze, and readily sized up the foe Machamp, swinging their spiky arms again as they prepared to attack.

"Aah... Cacturne again?"

Kite jumped. He had been so caught up in the scene he had hardly noticed the new speaker standing directly beside him. It was a girl with long, light brown hair and mostly blue attire. He identified her as the same person on the stairs-- the one he had almost crashed into.

"What's wrong with that?" he managed to ask, trying to act as if he had never seen her.

Well, Cacturne don't necessarily like the presence of people," the girl said simply. "Plus, the fact that they're nocturnal really makes it an odd sight." She sighed. "I heard it was because their food supply was running low... you know, the Pokemon that live outside in the desert with it."

"Desert–?" Kite paused as one of the Cacturne suddenly hissed in pain.

The entire scene had changed. Machamp skillfully landed one of its many strong arms down hard on the enemy, sand spraying from where the attack hit. Kite watched in wonder as the dirt sprinkled onto the ground, and decided that strangely this must be what their blood looked like. The girl stared dully at the fight, as if nothing was happening at all. Soon bored as well, Kite snuck off, making his way towards the Center again out of her sight.

He arrived at the doors as Machamp finished off the fight, its tall trainer taunting the sailors with laughter once more. Kite stared at the entrance for awhile, trying to decide if the fox was indeed here or not. Where else _could_ it be? Perhaps he should of asked the girl if she knew. She had to have been the first to see him.

But there was no point now.

Stepping inside the center, he was hardly surprised at its atmosphere. It mirrored the look of the building itself, as if someone had thrown a veil on the dreary looking center. Only three people stood in the room, two being sullen faced travelers buried in newspapers, and the other a receptionist behind a small counter. Kite nervously walked up to her, trying to avoid drawing attention to him.

She looked almost as lifeless as the hospital itself, typing carelessly on a keyboard, hardly noticing Kite as he stood there. He could tell that whatever she was doing, it had nothing to do with the medical business, and began to feel slightly stupid as he remained unnoticed.

"What do you want, kid?"

Kite stiffened at the question. What _did_ he want again? Oh, right.

"Um, is there an... um..."_Crap! What was that Pokemon's name anyways?_

The lady looked at him, clearly irritated at his presence. "A what? Hurry it up, I'm busy."

"Er, well, I don't really..."

"Is this a prank? Because I _can _and _will_ call the cops!"

"I-it's brown, and well, it had a fox tail!" he stuttered. Completely embarrassed at his description, Kite looked away. Perhaps this was when an education came in handy, if it had any other purpose in life. But the receptionist paid no heed to it, and walked off into another room behind her, mumbling in annoyance.

"An Eevee?!" she called out, the ruffling of papers issuing from inside.

"Oh, uh, yes!" It did look a lot like an 'Eevee', or whatever it was called.

The lady shuffled inside for a minute, knocking over various things and cursing occasionally as she did so. Kite took this chance to examine the room further. The two travelers still had not looked up from their papers.

Something screeched horribly from the second room; Kite could hear it racing through the door, its claws scraping against the ground. Of course, the lady had also screamed in unison, but Kite's mind was completely tied to the fox-like Pokemon that was now racing towards the entrance. The automatic doors zoomed open at her appearence, and it immediately bolted out into the sunlight, fur bristling. Only when the lady had flung herself back behind the desk did he pursue the Eevee.

He paused outside as the harsh light blinded him, but quickly regained his sight this time and continued after the Pokemon. _Only chance._

The Eevee dashed across the port and through the native sailors, who had continued their work, then sharply turned onto the docks. Catching sight of its long tail, Kite raced after it. The skillful dodging did not come back to him as he, too, passed the sailors, nearly knocking a few into the water or being flattened himself by the larger ones. What in the world was wrong with this Pokemon? It had just nearly drowned! _Why_ was its first occupation after waking up to go near the water again?

"Of course not," Kite panted to himself, stepping onto the dock Eevee had padded down a few seconds earlier. "A Pokemon couldn't be that stupid."

He nearly choked on the words as he spotted the Eevee at last, keeling over a corner of the dock and gazing contently into the swirling waters beneath it. It took a few steps back, then closing its eyes, launched itself straight into the water.

Kite caught hold of its tail before it had completely gone under. "S-Stupid Pokemon!"

The Eevee began to flail in his grasp, wailing in protest against its savior. In the end, Kite managed to pull it onto the dock, and quickly jumped back as the Eevee flung itself at him, snapping its jaws on thin air. Growling in rage, it quickly dashed away again, leaving Kite sitting there, wondering what possibilities could of occurred if the fox had bitten him. He wrenched his mind away from the thought and scanned the area again for the Pokemon. It had scurried off of the docks, its long ears pressed tightly against its head, and ran back towards the other end of the port near, as Kite realized, the entrance in which he had arrived through.

This was bad. Because he did not have a Pokeball, his only hope was to have Eevee accept him as its trainer. But it seemed extremely violent, not to mention completely _stupid_. And if it would not accept him, how could he possibly manage another Pokemon? And with that loss, there was Claymore's.

Kite reached into his pocket and pulled out the red feather, which he had recieved when the Pidgeotto was captured. It seemed to be lost in the ocean world, or was it a desert? Retracing his steps off of the dock, his mind began to wonder. He still did not know where he was, aside from the fact that he was in a port called Gateon. There was nothing at all desert about it, besides the heat and Cacturne.

"Hey, you."

The girl from the stairs had found herself at his side again, as quickly and quietly as she had before. Kite gave the same reaction, but she instantly grabbed and pulled him beneath the shade of a building before he realized what had happened.

"W-what?" he asked, pulling himself away from her.

"You can't just stand on the docks, you know. Far too busy." She glanced at the white piers, then turning her attention back to him, "Did you get your Pokemon back from the Center?"

A terrible question.

"Er, yeah." Kite shifted his gaze away from her, hoping she couldn't detect his lie.

"Well then, that's good. I must ask though, what exactly happened? That Eevee was completely drenched when Reim and I found you."

"It was trying to swim." That actually made since.

"You mean _she_, right?" The girl crossed her arms. "Sorry, but I hate it when people don't respect their own Pokemon by using the correct pronouns."

"Oh, sorry."

This was getting weird. Kite adverted his eyes up at the bright sky, wanting more than ever to drop the conversation. The girl tilted her head slightly.

"And, may I ask again, what you were doing before that?" Kite glanced back at her, but could not find a lie to make up for this one. She seemed to read his mind. "You're not from around here are you?"

"No. Unless this is still Johto."

The tension broke as he said this, and the girl seemed to remarkably turn normal. "Oh, well I guess that makes since. Johto's north of here, you know. Anyways, we're in Orre now."

"Orre? I've never heard of that region."

"_This_ region. Yes, it's not too popular, with hardly any sort of sights to see or Pokemon to catch..." She paused for a moment. "The only entrance into Orre is through Johto, and of course, it's located somewhere beyond an area called the Lake of Rage. But I'm guessing you know this?"

"Yeah, I live there." _Lived._

"Wow, really? I heard it was such a lovely place, now that the Gyarados are gone." She turned and stared over at the docks again, more than likely picturing herself vacationing in a paradise-filled land.

"Yeah, it's something," Kite muttered. So this was Orre. But why? Why had he never heard of it? There was no way that the sights and horrid location was the only reason for never being in the _Regions of the World_.

"Are you going to go back soon?" the girl asked a few minutes later.

"I don't know," Kite answered. His stomach lurched as he asked himself this question. He couldn't go back, unless he wanted a slow death. But what was there here for him? The Eevee was truly his only hope.

"Hm, well if you go, we should have a battle first."

"_What?!_" Kite backed away. The statement had caught him entirely off guard, and he knew the truth would have to come out soon.

"What's the matter? Flair isn't that powerful. I'm sure you would have a great chance at winning, and she could always use the training." The girl looked him up and down for a moment. "Where is your Pokemon, anyways?"

"Uh... Darn, it seems she escaped..." He rapidly scanned the area towards the entrance again.

And there she was, sitting on a cliff a few feet above the water, her tail swishing curiously as she stared into it. Pointing to her, "Ah! There it– er _she_– is!" he broke away from the girl, silently thanking the Pokemon.

The fox saw him coming, and bristled again at his appearence. Kite stopped a few feet away from it, glancing to see if the girl was still watching. To his great relief, she had gotten engaged in a conversation with the Machamp's trainer, who almost seemed to have appeared out of no where. Kite turned his attention back to the Eevee. "Okay, listen, you... Pokemon." Eevee let her tail droop slightly, a bit taken aback by his statement. But Kite went on. "You're trying to swim, aren't you?"

She let out a furious growl at this, showing her teeth in warning. Summoning his courage, Kite quickly came up with a solution. "Well, you'll never learn like that. You're, er, level is far too low!" Eevee closed her mouth. He had gotten her attention. "And, well," he continued, "you'll never grow levels if you don't train right? So..."

"I'll never have _you_ as my trainer, if that's what you're wanting!"

Kite froze. He had forgotten about the incident of understanding what Pokemon were saying, being use to the fact that Claymore could simply talk. The same question came into his mind: how? Muk had never spoken before. But perhaps this was an advantage.

"I know, I wouldn't want me either."

The little fox looked up at him in surprise, the phenomenon of him answering throwing her off completely.

"Well, well you know then!" she barked, and stood up to leave.

"But perhaps I wouldn't want a Pokemon like you to train."

The Eevee let out a fierce growl and rounded on him. "What is _that _suppose to mean?!"

"Well," Kite said simply, "a Pokemon that thinks it can learn such a skill by drowning itself is obviously stupid."

"Like I didn't know that!" she snapped. But the pain of humiliation rushed through her, and she could no longer bring herself to say anything more. Once again, Kite took advantage of the moment.

"Maybe if we could partner up– not training!" he added, "– then perhaps you can learn how to swim, and I–"

"And you what?" she demanded, furiously glaring up at him.

"I completely nothing. Just to give me a Pokemon until I can catch another. And when you can finally swim, you may leave. I won't even enter this region again."

That sounded about right. But Eevee did not answer, and began to walk away again.

"I'll think about it," she growled, swishing her fluffy tail in annoyance. It was something, even if the reply was not as sincere as he had wanted it. He let her go, and stared into the vast ocean. His last chance of survival seemed to float hopelessly on the swirling surface, sinking now and then but managing to pull itself up once more. He could not believe he was giving his future to a Pokemon that he despised, but what else was there? The end of the deal sounded ridiculous enough already.

Kite looked up in surprise as he noticed Eevee still standing there, motioning him to follow.

"I am not going to let you _disappoint _me by running off at the last moment," she hissed. "You shall stay in my sights until I am ready for my decision. I could use a few lessons without the risk of dying."

Kite nodded, a sense of joy filling him. That was pretty much a yes, right? And it got better; the female trainer was winding her way towards him again, beaming as she caught sight of the fox.

"Ah, you found her!" she exclaimed, pulling out her own Pokeball. A small, orange-brown creature peered from inside the capsule, the red part of it being transparent. At first, Kite thought it was another Eevee, until the girl sent it out in a burst of light.

The creature appeared of the same animal– a fox– but was slightly more complex. It wore six tails instead of one, each shining beautifully in the light. A mount of the same shiny fur tufted its head, a few stray bangs hanging in its bright brown eyes. The creature yawned, oblivious to the Eevee in front of it.

"So you _do_ accept the challenge, right?" the girl asked hopefully, replacing the Pokeball into her bag. Kite glanced down at Eevee, who had narrowed her eyes at the other fox. The simpleness of her design caused her to look weaker in his eyes, and struggled against the offer.

"Er, well–"

"Bring it on, punk!" Eevee interrupted, glaring fearlessly at the Vulpix. It looked back calmly at her, cocking its head in confusion, then replied to the remark with a faint voice.

"Such a hasty nature is not good for the complexion," it said. "Well, I guess I should of known as much, looking at you."

Kite hardly knew what had happened as a piercing bark rang out and the two Pokemon collided with each other. Eevee raked one of her sharp claws down the back of Vulpix's left ear, causing it to rip slightly and the victim to scream out in pain. But the six-tailed fox regained its composure, and retaliated with her own set of moves.

Vulpix first skidded to the right of Eevee, who took the bait and launched herself for a tackle. But as she did so, the Vulpix gracefully dove under her, and gave a surprise attack to her underbelly. Eevee cried out as she was flung off her feet and into the air, the prettier fox landing in a dainty manner onto ground a few feet away. But unlike Vulpix, Eevee managed to land hard on her side, and slowly pulled herself back up, wincing all the while. Vulpix yawned again, looking thoroughly amused as its trainer bowed in apology to Kite.

"Aah, sorry," the girl said. "Flair hasn't battled in awhile, and it's kinda gotten to her. She really wants to win..." She glared down at her Pokemon as it barked a laugh. Kite almost wanted to do the same as Eevee gave him the same cold stare.

"What, do you think it's my fault?" he whispered, not wanting to look awkward in front of the other trainer as he confronted his Pokemon.

"_Well, _perhaps if you knew anything useful!" she growled. Vulpix had ceased its laughing and returned to its feat, ready to finish the battle it craved to have.

Kite shook his head. "I don't know any of your attacks."

"Well neither do I!" Eevee shot back.

"Wha...? _How do you not know your own attacks?!_"

"Humans are the ones who give our power names. _We_ only know what they are to us! Of course, I've only seen a few of my own."

"Well isn't that convenient!"

"Um, is something the matter?" the other trainer asked.

In unison, both Kite and Eevee quickly returned to their original position, together hoping she did not suspect anything. Kite rapidly searched his mind in hopes of recalling anything about Eevee's moves.

"Nothing," Kite answered. "So um, that tactic Vulpix used... a creative 'Tackle', right?"

Tackle was an extremely common move, so why wouldn't Eevee know it as well? The two moves looked exactly the same when they had both performed it moments before. Vulpix perked its ears up at the comment, while the girl nodded.

"Yes, Flair is fairly good at coming up with her own strategies. I rarely have to help her at all, but of course..." She smiled faintly. "...there are some things that need a bit of heating up."

Vulpix sprang, its many flame-colored tails wisping behind it. Eevee dodged at the last minute as a searing fire bursted from the Pokemon's mouth, though it managed to singe a part of her tail as she skidded away. But Eevee took no notice to this, and instead found another chance to strike.

The Tackle was efficient, and Vulpix was sent staggering back, panting to catch her breath.

"Wow, no one's ever been able to dodge Flair's Flamethrower before," the girl remarked. Eevee snickered as the Vulpix glared dangerously up at its trainer.

"Maybe I don't have nice complexion, but I guess it's better than being a screw-up," Eevee jeered.

Vulpix reacted the same way Eevee had done moments before, and charged at her foe in rage. Eevee took the advantage, and quickly reenacted Vulpix's strategy, dodging beneath her opponent and flinging her off her feet. But Vulpix still had the grace that Eevee lacked, and instead of falling down in a bundling mess, it lurched onto a nearby lamppost, easily keeping her balance on the thin pole.

"Fire Blast!"

Kite looked over at the girl in confusion, but his questions were soon answered as Vulpix unleashed a massive wave of heat. Instead of the quick flames of the first-used Flamethrower, the attack brought of giant wave of hotter fire, forming together to create a large X, and Kite could do nothing but watch as it engulfed the Eevee.

But the flames did not connect.

A sphere of dark matter flew into the oncoming flames, splitting them in half and flickering around the uninjured Eevee. Vulpix looked completely shocked as it spotted her still standing there, nothing burnt but the top of her long tail.

"A Shadow Ball?!" Vulpix's trainer exclaimed, her voice mimicking her Pokemon's expression.

"Shadow Ball?" Kite repeated. Well, that was two down: Tackle and this.

Eevee shook herself as the small flames died down around her, and looked up at the Vulpix again, who was still dumbstruck from the move. She cast it a dark look, then crouched down as another shadowy sphere began to grown in front of her. She was a few moments away from releasing it at the opponent when the girl walked up and blocked her aim.

"That's enough for now," she said breathlessly. Vulpix jumped down from the pole and walked up to her feat.

"_What?_" Eevee hissed, dismissing the sphere. But Kite was glad she had called off the fight. He had so many questions, but how to ask without sounding completely clueless was the other problem.

"Not a bad move to teach it," the girl said, returning her Pokemon and looking over at Kite. "I guess it comes in handy when fighting ghost types huh? Since your Pokemon's a normal type and all."

_What?_ No, only reasonable questions. "Yeah. So um... uh..."

Well this was turning out wonderfully. The flaw of his new partner knowing his lack of intelligence on the subject would cost him her trust, if there was any in the first place.

"What?" the trainer asked.

"You're name..."

"_Oh!_ Of course, how stupid of me! I'm Taylor, and _this_," she nodded towards the six-tailed fox, "is Flair."

"Flair?" Kite repeated. Claymore had said something about that.

"Yeah. It's a nickname. It's pretty unoriginal but..." She looked down at the Vulpix, who had begun to groom its fur in boredom, "...I think it fits. Does your Pokemon have a nickname?"

"_You wish..._" Eevee rasped.

"No, she doesn't," Kite cast a glance down at her. "Actually, I just kinda caught her. So she's pretty _weak_." He had added this as Eevee began to taunt him about 'catching' her, and she immediately let out a yowl of rage, before pressing herself into the ground, trying not to cause attention.

"Oh, really?" Taylor said, looking a bit troubled about losing to a newly caught Pokemon."Well, if you want to train, there's a city that's perfect for beginners. That is, if you weren't leaving." She began to scan the area for someone. Eevee snuck a look at Kite.

"You were leaving?"she screeched, still fuming about the insult he had given her. "I am _not_ going with you to some freak show country!"

"Shut up, I'm not leaving yet," Kite whispered. Eevee snorted and turned her back to him.

"Aha! There's Reim," Taylor exclaimed abruptly. "He's leaving for the same town tonight, and I'm sure he would be more than happy to escort you." She took a few steps away from Kite. "So, should I ask him? It's a really great place!"

"Where is it?" Kite asked.

"Phenac," she replied shortly. "It's probably one of the only beautiful places in Orre. There's a lot of water, though." She looked down at Eevee, remembering the previous day of finding the soaked fox. "But, well, I'm sure that's okay! I mean, they're just fountains."

"Sounds nice." Kite looked down at Eevee again. "Right?"

Eevee hardly looked at him, but gave a curt nod. Taylor for some reason looked absolutely thrilled.

"Okay then! Hey, Reim!" She bolted off towards the man, and Kite was left standing beside his enraged Pokemon. This was going to go terribly if she remained that way. He would have to make sure she could tolerate him, even if it meant admitting how inexperienced he was.

"You _are_ okay with this, right?" he asked, pushing his last thoughts out of his mind. No, there would be no reason to tell her. She wouldn't be with him that long anyways.

Eevee sighed, releasing the last of her anger. "Yes, it's just fine. As long as I don't get dragged into another weird region. This one's already accomplished that."

"You mean, you didn't come from here?"

"Of course not! Do you think someone such as _me_ would live in such a hell?"

They dropped the conversation. Taylor was still chatting nonstop when Kite spotted her again, and he groaned in annoyance, slumping down onto a nearby bench. Eevee quickly followed, panting heavily against the sun thanks to her thick coat.

What would Phenac be like? As the girl had mentioned, there was water, though it sounded a lot cooler than Gateon. But water... it was such a nice thing, but a nuisance as well. Great to encourage Eevee to continue following him, but what if she mastered how to swim as soon as they got there? That was not enough time to find another Pokemon, if Phenac had any in the first place.

That reminded him, were there Pokemon in Orre at all? Beside the Cacturne, no one had mentioned anything about other wild Pokemon, aside from the cacti's prey.

Prey. They were starving... why?

Kite brought himself back to reality as the girl returned.

"He... said.... yes!" she panted. "He also said to meet him at the entrance in an hour. The other one, with the tunnel."

"So that would be..." Kite looked up at the sky. It seemed almost bloodstained as the sun slowly fell behind the ocean's waves. "I'm guessing it's almost seven then?"

Taylor nodded, her energy restored. "You'll be returning, right? I'm sure Flair would love a rematch sometime–"

"_Flair, Flair, Flair... _oh would you _shut up?_" Eevee raked her claws irritably against the metal bench.

"-And me too, of course," the girl added, unable to understand the fox's rude remark.

"Maybe," Kite mumbled, grateful that she couldn't. "I have no idea how long we'll be there though." Truthfully, he never wanted to see her again, or anyone in that matter. A few quick days in Phenac, then back to Johto. No more Gateon, Phenac, or any other place in this 'Orre'. And most importantly, no more Eevee.

"Oh, well okay." Taylor looked down at her feet, trying to find some way to end the conversation. "Bye then," she managed.

"I hope you get murdered!" Eevee barked as she left. "Or even better–"

"Let's go already," Kite muttered. The fox began to mock him again, but followed quickly behind as they approached the entrance tunnel. Only darkness could be seen down it, the sun already halfway drowning in the waves behind them. Kite turned and stared at the ocean, thankful that the dying sun lowered the temperatures, though his attention was quickly caught by something else.

"Is that an island?" he asked himself aloud. Eevee followed his gaze until she too spotted it. The land was far-off, but that was not the only thing covering it from full view. Massive clouds seemed to emit from it, swirling and looking almost black against the red sun's light.

"Oh, yay. An island," she said sarcastically. "What's taking that Reim guy so long? It's been long enough already!"

As if on cue, the tall man appeared a few minutes later, his Machamp following close behind. He was now wearing a large leather jacket and the same dark shades, causing him to stick out in the warm climate.

"'Sup? You two the brats I have to manage? Aha, I'm just kidding!" He smartly sidestepped as Eevee rushed at him. "So, I'm guessing you thought we were leaving tonight then?"

Kite looked at him in confusion. "We're not?"

"Nope! Way too dangerous." Reim bend down and began to rummage through a large bag Machamp had been carrying. "Traveling at night means Cacturne, and since they've been becoming more aggressive, that's the worst mistake you can make during these days. No, we'll leave in the morning. That'll limit the days to one and a half, arriving in Phenac the day after tomorrow."

"W-wait, that means we'll be in the desert one night though!" Maybe staying in Gateon wasn't a bad idea after all.

"Yep, but we have Machamp here," Reim answered cooly. The superpower Pokemon nodded proudly as its trainer continued. "Dark Pokemon are weak against fighting. Though, you are right..." He paused dramatically, lowering his voice for effect. "Cacturne live in packs, large ones at that. They swoop in on their prey quietly, always in the dead of night. Their footsteps make no noise in the sand, so you never know when they're directly behind you. And when they _are_ close enough–"

"_Okay_, we get it!" Kite turned away, images of the Pokemon's large arms crushing easily through flesh flashing in his mind.

"Good!" Reim said happily, standing up and returning to his normal voice. "Everything's here, so we'll be ready first thing in the morning!"

Eevee, who had been pawing at the ground during the Cacturne story, perked her ears and proudly marched over to Kite, her tail high in the air. "I want to sleep indoors."

"_What?_ I don't have any money for that!" he hissed quietly at her. The fox gave him the same annoyed glare, then charged off towards Machamp.

"Where do the _intelligent _Pokemon sleep, good sir?" she asked politely.

"Outside, like the rest of 'em. You're in luck though- we've got blankets," it said, whipping out a cloth from Reim's bag and dropping it on her. Eevee stood motionlessly in horror and disgust, then stomped back over to Kite, who was enjoying the event, and dropped the blanket beside him.

"I think I can manage without this garbage," she mumbled. "I can't say the same about you though." She then stalked off a few meters away, laying against a large welcome sign.

"So if you don't want to be completely humiliated for camping out in the middle of the entrance," Reim called over to Kite, "you'll wake up early enough! Sleeping here will give us the best start in the morning!"

Kite nodded, then laid down, his back facing Eevee as she growled to herself in the darkness. Machamp did not follow their lead and instead gazed down the dark tunnel, ready at any time for battle. Eevee also stared down the entrance, her ears perked up for any sounds of movement. But they did not come, and she soon lowered her head for the rest of the night.

Kite could not find sleep, though, and began to wonder what would happen the night they were truly out in the open. The port was now empty at the late time, which caused it to take on an eerie silence, only disturbed by the roaring of the waves against the docks. He could picture the Cacturne invading the town, ripping down houses and crushing the wood beneath their arms. Perhaps the same would befall them the next day. Was this really worth it?

But in the end, he decided nothing really could occur with the support of Machamp and Reim, and slowly drifted off.

(Note: I swear the next chapter's better, maybe... Anyways, I appreciate anyone that reads this, again.)


End file.
